Davis Cup: all eyes on Dan Evans as British doubles pair serve up a treat against Slovakia

With the exception of ice-dance, there can be few more symbiotic partnerships
in sport than a successful doubles team. Which is why the evolution of Ross
Hutchins and Colin Fleming into a serious force on the ATP tour is a bonus
for British tennis.

Since reaching the quarter-finals of last year’s Wimbledon, Hutchins and Fleming have been collecting plaudits from such expert observers as the Bryan brothers – the world’s top-ranked pair – who tipped them to be among the eight leading teams at the end of the season.

On Saturday, Great Britain needed them to bring the same quality to the Davis Cup. And to the delight of 3,000 vocal fans at Braehead Arena, they showed all their skill and resolve to dispatch the Slovak Republic partnership of Filip Polasek and Michal Mertinak, and give Great Britain a 2-1 lead going into the final day of the tie.

Although both the Slovakians are expert doubles performers in their own right, the difference is that they do not play together week in, week out, on the ATP tour.

The British pair had the extra understanding when the match was in the balance, so that one always knew when the other would step in, drop back, or make an interception. That was the difference in their 6-3, 7-6, 0-6, 6-3 win.

The match received a fine compliment from Miloslav Mecir, the Slovakian team captain and two-time Grand Slam finalist, who said “You don’t get much better doubles than this.”

Fleming, whose economics degree from nearby Stirling University must make him one of Britain’s most cerebral sportsmen, took a different view.

“It was scrappy at times,” he said, “but it shows how far we’ve come that we can be saying that and still sitting here with the a victory. It was a really special moment. When you win a one-off match like this there is a huge sense of elation.”

With the Olympics still to come this season, the development of Fleming and Hutchins – whose father Paul happens to be the manager of the British Olympic team – into a competitive outfit is all the more timely.

In all probability, they will form one of the home teams in the competition, while the Murray brothers will make up the other one.

With a 2-1 lead to build on today, the Great Britain must now turn to either James Ward or Dan Evans to earn the third point that would bring them their first win at this level since Tim Henman’s final Davis Cup appearance in 2007.

And all without Andy Murray, who began his training block with Ivan Lendl yesterday in Florida, but has still found time to follow events in Glasgow.

“Andy must have been watching,” said Hutchins, “because I spoke to him yesterday and he was saying how well Dan had played on the first day.”

Evans did indeed produce a stunning and unexpected victory over Lukas Lacko, a player ranked 211 places above him, in the opening rubber of this tie. Can he do it again?

The suspicion is that he may have to, because Lacko will find Ward’s one-paced, heavy-hitting game more to his liking on Sunday.

“We will see if Evans can put up another performance like the one he produced against Lukas,” said Mecir.

“He would be better ranked [than No. 276 in the world] if he played like this all the time. ”